INDIANAPOLIS - IUPUI Head Men’s Soccer Coach Steve Franklin announced the signing of six student-athletes to National Letters of Intent to join the Jaguars, beginning in 2009. All six will be true freshmen starting next fall.

“All six of these young men are outstanding individuals who possess solid technical skills and are true competitors,” Franklin said. “They will all be excellent representatives for the university and our soccer program.”

The six signees are as follows:

Mason Cassady (Bloomington, Ind./Bloomington North), a 5-foot-8 midfielder/forward, was a three-year varsity starter and four-year letterwinner at Bloomington North High School. He earned First Team All-Conference and All-County honors in 2008 following his senior season. Prior to his senior season, Cassady gained a spot on the state ODP team.

In club soccer, he helped his Bloomington Cutters team to a state championship and five runner-up finishes. Cassady comes from a family of six boys and has had three older brothers all play Division I soccer.

Emile Garcia (Newburgh, Ind./Evansville Memorial), a 6-foot-2 defender, was a two-year starter on Evansville Memorial’s back-to-back state championship squads. His senior year, Garcia totaled six goals and two assists as Memorial went 23-0-2. Garcia was a team captain for a defense that posted a 0.39 goals against average with 18 shutouts. Individually, Garcia was named to the NSCAA/adidas All-Region IV team, First Team All-State and All-District and Academic All-City.

As a junior, Garcia helped the squad to a 23-0-2 record and a No. 1 national ranking from the NSCAA. An All-City pick, he scored two goals and helped anchor a defense that registered 20 shutouts and a 0.31 GAA. Garcia played club soccer for 10 years with Evansville Elite and picked the Jaguars over interest from IPFW and Louisville.

Kyle Hyland (Bay Village, Ohio/Bay Village), a 5-foot-7 midfielder, was a two-time adidas/NSCAA All-Midwest Regional team pick and two-time All-Ohio selection. He closed his prep career with 25 goals and 35 assists, leading Bay Village in assists his final three seasons. He also earned back-to-back First Team All-Greater Cleveland and First Team All-West Shore Conference honors. Bay Village captured conference crowns each of his final three seasons and was a Division II OHSAA State Semi-Finalist his freshman, sophomore and senior seasons. In 2005, his squad was the state runner-up.

He is a former U.S. National Team player and is currently a national pool player. He was also a three-year ODP Regional player and has competed in Mexico, England and Italy. He helped Cleveland United to a State Cup finalist finish in 2007 and 2008 and currently plays for the U18 Columbus Crew Academy team. Tabbed among the nation’s top incoming freshmen, Hyland is a four-year honor roll student and intends on studying health sciences.

Denny Moynihan (Highland, Ind./Highland), a 6-foot-1 midfielder, ranks sixth among his graduating class of 300 students and has honed his skills with Sockers FC Chicago. Moynihan was an All-District and All-Conference selection following his junior season at Highland, scoring 16 goals for the Trojans. He opted against playing high school soccer his senior year, instead training with the Sockers FC Academy and Top Talent Programs. The previous year, he helped the Sockers to an Illinois State Championship and Dallas Cup Semifinalist finish.

He previously helped his club teams to national finalist finishes in 2005 and 2006. He was a two-year member of the Indiana State ODP Team and has trained in Germany, Holland and Belgium. He picked IUPUI over Loyola (Ill.), UIC and New Hampshire.

Ryan Robinson (St. Joseph, Mich./St. Joseph), a 6-foot-4 forward, was a First Team All-State pick after leading St. Joe’s with 25 goals and eight assists in 2008. He helped the Bears to a 12-6-1 record in his final season. As a junior, he tallied a team-high 15 goals and was named First Team All-Big 16 Conference, All-District and All-Division. His squad went 15-6-1 and he was tabbed the team’s Offensive Player of the Year.

Robinson served as team captain for his club team, the Kalamazoo Kingdom Reserves, and helped lead them to a national tournament berth in Tampa, Fla.. Kalamazoo Kingdom was ranked the No. 3 club in North America among Super Y-Leagues while the boys club was ranked No. 5 overall. Robinson was named a 2008 Super Y-League National Select Player, ranking among the top two percent among all players in his age bracket in the league.

Michael Wignot (Carmel, Ind./Carmel), a 6-foot defender, is a three-star recruit and ranked No. 76 in the 2009 class by Top Drawer Soccer. He totaled two goals and two assists from his defensive position as a senior, earning Second Team All-State honors. He also earned All-MIC and All-District awards as a senior. Wignot was a reserve on Carmel’s 2006 undefeated state championship squad, earning the first men’s soccer state title in school history.

Prior to his senior year, Wignot helped Carmel United win the U16 National Championship in Carson, Calif.. He was previously named to the U.S. Men’s Academy Great Lakes Conference starting XI.

“The most telling trait of this recruiting class is that they have all successfully competed against some of the best talent in the nation via their respective club, Academy and ODP teams,” Franklin said. “They have been tutored by some outstanding coaches and have chosen IUPUI in order to facilitate their goals at the next level – both academically and athletically. My staff and I are extremely excited to have them join our Jaguars soccer family.”

IUPUI loses seven seniors from this past year’s team which finished 8-9-2 overall and gained the No. 4 seed in The Summit League Tournament in Rochester, Mich.. The Jaguars top three scorers were freshmen in 2008, as was the team’s starting goalkeeper.

2009 IUPUI Men’s Soccer NLI Signings (as of 2/16/09)

Name                          Ht.      Wt.     Pos.        Hometown/High School (Club Team)

Mason Cassady        5-8     150    MF/F       Bloomington, Ind./North (Bloomington Cutters)

Emile Garcia             6-2     165       D          Newburgh, Ind./Evansville Memorial (Evansville Elite)

Kyle Hyland               5-7     150      MF         Bay Village, Ohio/Bay Village (Columbus Crew)

Denny Moynihan      6-1     180      MF         Highland, Ind./Highland (Sockers FC)

Ryan Robinson         6-4     175        F           St. Joseph, Mich./St. Joseph (Kalamazoo Kingdom Reserves)

Michael Wignot         6-0     165       D          Carmel, Ind./Carmel (Carmel United)